Colour Blends
by Splattifying Agent 2
Summary: After Agent 3's latest mission, an Octoling finds herself stuck in Inkopolis. How will she ever get home? (Rated T for minor swearz)
1. Chapter 1

**[A/N] So, I scrapped my last idea for a story. It was supposed to be a big dramatic story about how a fourth agent (Jake's friend, Kat) got near-mortally wounded in a fight with the Octolings on Saltspray Rig, but I didn't like it enough to keep writing it so I killed it.**

 **This one's a bit more cliché, from what I've seen so far; it's another "Octoling trapped in Inkopolis" story. I've seen two other stories with that exact plot, chances are they are both better than this one. (Both are in my favourites list if you want to read them)**

 **The names aren't as punny as they could be, but a couple friends of mine might like to know that they're featured in one of my stories. (From now on, my Inklings are likely going to be named after real-life people I know. Personalities aren't necessarily going to be the same, though.)**

 _So, without further ado…_

Colour Blends

Fear. Sheer, unadulterated terror. That was the only thing running through her mind.

The Octoling shifted her weapon between her hands nervously. She tried to calm herself down the way she had been for years; she sung to herself, quietly. And it worked, sort of.

Didn't quite get rid of the fear, though. There was too much that could've happened on this mission to be completely calm.

She looked around, as if to reassure herself. Sure enough, the Zapfish was still there.

She was scared. Scared of her superiors if this failed, scared of getting splatted… most of all, she was scared of Agent 3.

Even thinking of that title made her angry. Agent 3 was a thief. He was worse than the rest of the Inklings put together. He had destroyed countless allies of hers, dethroned her king, and stolen their Zapfish. If only she could be the one to take him down…

The sound of ink being fired snapped the Octoling out of her thoughts. She quickly scanned the area, trying to locate her allies, but all she could see were bursts of ink as they were splatted. Agent 3 was right in the middle of it all.

She gulped. She knew all about Agent 3's skill. There was no way she could've taken him on alone. Thinking quickly, she inked a path away from the Zapfish, switched to octopus form, and swam as far away as she could.

She could see Agent 3 approach the Zapfish. He didn't seem to have noticed her. She saw him pull out a Splat Bomb and nonchalantly toss it at the Zapfish cage. It let out a blinding flash, before Agent 3 grabbed it.

She let out a mental sigh. Another Zapfish taken. The Octarian race would run out of power soon.

It wasn't until then that the Octoling realized how tired she was. She looked at the sky. The sun was about to go down. It was going to be pretty late soon. She had to get back to her home before it got dark.

After a quick scan of the area, she noticed a launchpad. Quickly, she swam over to it, and jumped back to Octo Valley.

The Octoling's eyes were already closing. She couldn't even tell if she'd be able to get back home before she just curled up and went to sleep on the ground.

She frantically looked around the area, but most of the kettles were surrounded by ink. It wasn't Octo ink; she couldn't have swam through them if she tried.

She finally spotted a clean kettle, and ran over to it as fast as her legs could carry her. As she was about to jump in, the Octoling hesitated.

She didn't know her way around Octo Valley as well as she would've liked; she had no idea where most of these kettles led. For the first time, she thought about rumours of monsters, even stronger than the Octarians, that lurked in the darkest corners of the valley. What if this kettle propelled her towards them?

She weighed her options. Either she could take her chances with the kettle, or she could spend a cold night trying to sleep on the ground in the valley. She didn't like either one much.

She took a breath, steeled her nerves, and swam into the kettle.

The first thing that she noticed was how smooth the trip was. The kettles running through Octo Valley usually had clunky, uncomfortable journeys, so this was nice. The second thing was how long it was taking. As she was pondering this, she popped out at the destination. That was the third thing she noticed.

The kettle had taken her to Inkopolis.

She clapped a hand over her mouth. This was not good. Inklings were going to be everywhere. She would get splatted on sight.

Calm. Stay calm, she told herself. She began to sing again. It really did help.

But she had no idea what to do. She could've gone back to Octo Valley, but that ran the risk of finding something even worse. She ran into a nearby alleyway, and peaked out into the plaza.

There weren't as many Inklings as she would've thought. Maybe she'd be able to survive after all.

At this time of night, most of them would be either sleeping, or about to return to their homes.

As she was considering whether she should just turn to octopus form and sleep in a trash can for the night, she heard voices. She ducked back into the alley, and looked for the source. She found it quickly.

Four Inklings were talking and laughing. One was yellow, one was green, one was light blue, and the last was orange. The green one was a girl, and all the rest were boys. All four had weapons.

The green one had a giant roller-type weapon that was taller than she was. The yellow one had a fancy-looking purple and black bucket. The light blue one held a small gun that looked like a toy, and the orange one had a gold shooter that had a small tank on top. She gulped.

As she watched, the Inklings waved good-bye to each other and started to go their separate ways. The light blue one was walking straight at her hiding spot.

She almost screamed. Quickly, she switched to octopus form and hid in a nearby trash can. The Inkling walked by without noticing her. She let out a mental sigh of relief.

It occurred to her that this Inkling might lead her to a more comfortable place to stay for the night. She couldn't say anything, of course, but she could follow him.

Stealth mode. That could work. She hopped out of the trash can, switched back to humanoid form, and started following him.

Being this close to an Inkling made her even more nervous. Her heart was beating like a drum. Any second, she was terrified that he would hear her, look around, and splat her.

She realized that she had no idea where she was being led. Even if she found a better place to stay for the night, there was no telling whether she'd be able to get back to Octo Valley in the morning anyway.

Somewhat lost in her thoughts, she wasn't looking where she was going and tripped. On reflex, she yelped.

She looked up and saw the Inkling jump about a foot in the air before turning around and seeing her. His eyes widened, and he raised his weapon. She could see his finger grip the trigger.

"Wait!" she cried. It came out a bit more pathetic than she intended. "Please don't splat me! I-I'm not here to hurt anyone, I promise! I was tired and I took a wrong turn! I just want to go home!"

The Inkling kept his gun raised. "You have a weapon, don't you?"

She held up her Octoshot in surprise. "Well, yeah, but I just haven't taken it off yet. You can have it if you want."

He nodded. "Slide it over to me. With your ink tank. …Slowly," he added.

She disconnected her weapon from the tank, and kicked them towards him. He smashed the weapon with his foot, and drained the tank into his gun before smashing it, too.

"Hands behind your head." She did as she was told. "Now walk." She moved ahead of him. He kept his weapon pointed at her.

A short walk later, the two of them had reached a building. He grabbed her arm, and led her to what she presumed was his apartment.

The Octoling noted her surroundings. Closest to the door was a small kitchen, with a fridge, microwave, and stove. Next to the kitchen was a living room, with two comfy-looking chairs and a couch facing a TV that had a couple of video game systems attached to it. A hallway connected the living room to some more rooms she couldn't see.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" he asked her. "Go ahead, sit down."

She obliged, taking a seat on one of the chairs. The Inkling left and returned with a different weapon that was bulkier, completely grey, with a wider barrel. She gulped.

This wasn't looking any better. He probably just didn't want to attract any attention when he splatted her. She squeezed her eyes shut and waited.

"What are you doing?" His voice surprised her. Her eyes opened again.

"…Waiting for you to splat me."

"I wasn't going to splat you."

"Then why do you still have a weapon?"

"I want to ask you some questions."

"That's not what it looks like."

"OK, fine." He disappeared again. When he came back, his hands were empty. "Better?"

"…A bit."

"Alright. What are you doing in Inkopolis?"

"I already told you that in the alley."

"I want to make sure you aren't lying."

"How are you planning to do that?"

"…Take off your mask."

"What? Why?"

"Just do it."

The Octoling did as she was told. She had forgotten she was wearing it in the first place.

"Now look at me."

She looked at him, getting a good look at his features for the first time. Nothing really stood out, though. His eyes were blue, a darker shade than his tentacles.

"Great, I didn't even have to ask."

"Ask what?"

"For you to look in my eyes."

She looked away quickly. "…Sorry."

"No, no, keep looking."

She stared into his eyes again.

"Great. Now, what are you doing here?"

"I already told you that."

"Tell me again. Start from the beginning."

She described everything that had happened to her since the mission. "…and then I met you in the alleyway, and now we're here."

"Why didn't you just go back to Octo Valley once you realized where you were?"

"I was… _really_ tired. I still am. I wasn't really thinking straight."

He pondered that for a while. She waited anxiously for his response.

"…Okay."

"Okay?" she asked. "Okay what?" 

"I believe you."

"Just like that?" she replied, incredulous. "For all you know, I could be an assassin, and you're just gonna trust me?"

"Of course I am. You weren't lying."

"How could you tell?"

"It's one of my many talents."

"Yeah, and I'll bet modesty is another."

"As a matter of fact, that's number seventeen." He cracked a smile. "Anyway, I believe your story, and I'm going to help you get back home."

"You are?" she asked excitedly. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" She jumped up and pulled him into a crushing hug.

"Hey! I still need to breathe to help you!" he gasped.

"Sorry," she replied with a smile. "I got a bit excited."

"Well, don't get too excited. I can't do it right now." Her spirits fell.

"What? Why not?"

"Listen." She cocked her head. The Octoling could hear loud music and some screaming.

"This is when all the late-night Inklings are partying. If we tried to get you back to Octo Valley right now, you'd get noticed for sure. We'll have to wait until tomorrow."

"…Okay," she replied halfheartedly. She began to sniffle.

"Hey." He looked in her eyes. "Don't look so down. I promise I'll get you back home."

The Octoling smiled and brushed away her tears.

"Alright!" said the Inkling suddenly. He jumped up out of his seat. "If you're gonna be staying here tonight, we need to get you a place to sleep."

"Oh, I can just sleep on the couch-"

"No way. You're a guest in my home, and I don't let guests sleep on the couch. Come on. I'll give you the two-minute tour before I show you your room."

He led her down the hallway and pointed in one direction. "First things first, the bathroom is at the end of that hallway. The door just to your left is just a closet. Nothing interesting in there." He pointed in the other direction. "Over at this end is my room. If you need anything during the night, chances are I'll be in there. And this…" He walked to the last door in the hallway. "…is the guest room. You'll be sleeping in here." He pushed the door open.

For a guest room, it was pretty fantastic. There were a total of three empty closets, a bedside table, a digital clock, and a massive bed in the middle of it all. The Octoling's eyes lit up. This would be a great place to stay! "Wow…" was all she could get out.

"You like it, then?" he asked.

"This is awesome!" she replied. She immediately ran over to the bed and sat on it. It was just as comfy as it looked.

"Well, before you get too comfortable, I need to lay out some ground rules," he said. She nodded in response. "First of all, if, for any reason, you end up being by yourself in here, don't make too much noise. The walls here are pretty thin. Second, if someone's at the door, do _not_ unlock it for anything. That includes me, because I've got a key. Don't answer the phone, either. You can help yourself to any food in the kitchen, and you can do whatever you want when you get bored as long as you don't break anything. I think that covers everything. Any questions?"

"Sure. What's your name?" She asked with a grin.

"Oh yeah, I guess we haven't really introduced each other yet, have we? Well, my name is Jake." He stuck out his hand.

"Nice to meet you, Jake," she replied, shaking his hand. "I'm Tori."

"Alright, Tori. I've said everything I need to say, so methinks it's time to get to bed. Night."

"Good night," she said. He left the room, and shut the door behind him.

Tori didn't even bother removing her armor, she just flopped down underneath the covers. She was asleep almost immediately.

She smiled. To think, in one more day, she'd be back home.

 **[A/N] So, chapter 1 is FINALLY finished. I know it didn't take me that long, but it feels good to have it done. I've got some stuff planned for this story, and I think it'll turn out OK. The beginning seems a bit choppy, but I don't care, what are y'all gonna do about it.**

 **Chapter 2 is being worked on as you read this, so I'll see you again soon!**


	2. Chapter 2

**[A/N] Bleh, this took way longer than it should've. I'm a master procrastinator, so I can't guarantee a steady schedule (plus school, you know). I just haven't really been feeling much motivation lately.**

 **This chapter has something that I've been planning for a REALLY long time (yeah, a month is a REALLY long time). Hopefully it turns out OK.**

Tori's eyes opened lazily. She glanced at the clock on the bedside table. It read 12:45.

Alright, that seemed as good a time as any. She slowly sat up, stretched her arms out, and yawned.

Getting out of the bed, she opened the door, and walked into the living room, yawning again.

"Good morning," she heard. She looked up and saw Jake, a smirk on his face. He was in the kitchen, flipping something in a pan.

"Morning," she replied. She looked curiously at the pan. "Whatcha cooking?"

"Brunch," he replied. "I don't have the makings of a proper lunch and I figured you might be hungry, so I just decided on brunch. You like pancakes?"

"Pan… cakes?" she asked. "What are those?"

"You've never had pancakes?" he asked incredulously. When she nodded, he said "Boy, are you in for a treat. Not to toot my own horn, but my pancakes are number one in Inkopolis."

She chuckled. " _Suuuuuuure_ they are."

"Hey, they'll be number one for you! You've got nothing to compare them to."

"Yeah, good point. Alright, bring on these number one pancakes of yours."

He flipped the pancakes one more time, then tossed them onto a plate and served them in front of Tori, with a fork and knife. She carefully sliced off a piece and took a bite. A smile instantly spread across her lips. "This is delicious!"

"I figured. But you know what'll make it even better?" He placed a bottle of syrup in front of her. She didn't hesitate; she immediately opened the bottle and started drizzling the pancakes with syrup. She quickly cut off a bigger piece and chomped on it. The smile grew wider. "This is the best food I've ever tasted!"

Jake grinned. "Glad you like it. Take as many as you want."

The pancakes didn't last long. Tori quickly devoured her stack as Jake quietly munched on his. Neither said much. When she was finished, Tori leaned back in her chair and let out a long sigh. "Where did you learn to cook like _that_?"

"Family recipe," he replied. "If you think those are good, though, you should try my mom's. I don't know how she does it, but they taste like heaven came down from the sky and flew into your mouth."

They sat in silence for a moment before Jake stood up.

"Alright," he said. "I'm gonna go to the plaza, and find a way back to Octo Valley. I won't be long."

She nodded, and he left.

{asterisks}

Jake wasn't lying about it not taking long. He knew of an entrance close to his apartment, and just needed to check up on it. _You can never be too careful_ , he thought.

So of course, something was bound to go wrong. When he made it to the kettle, he was horrified to see that it was blocked off by a policeman. He walked up to him.

"Excuse me, officer," he asked. "What's going on here?"

The officer shook his head. "You kids oughta watch the news more often," he said in that age-old "what's this generation coming to" tone. Jake flinched.

"Last night, someone reported finding something in a back alley, so we checked it out. Turns out it was an Octoshot, and it wasn't a replica. It was the real deal." Jake cursed at himself silently. He should've taken the weapon with him. "Since we know there's an Octoling hiding out here, all routes to the valley have been blocked off. Wherever she is, we'll find her, and she'll be taken care of."

Dammit. That complicated things. "What if it wasn't her fault, though? Maybe she just came here by accident. It hardly seems fair to persecute her for something that she didn't do."

The cop's eyes narrowed. "What do you know, kid?"

"Oh, I don't know anything," Jake replied. "I'm just another of this hopeless generation of kids that needs to take more part in current events than in Turf Wars, _sir_."

The officer glowered at him. Jake stared back for a while, before saying "Well, this was fun, but I have a friend I need to get back to."

He started to walk back to his apartment.

{asterisks}

Tori was looking for a book to read when she heard Jake's keys in the lock. The door opened, and she heard his voice. "Tori? Where'd you go?"

She walked back to the living room. "I was looking for a book. Got anything interesting?"

"Depends on what you like reading. My books are organized by subject matter, though, so it shouldn't be hard to find one. They're all in my room." She started to walk there, but he interrupted her again. "Tori, can you come out here for a second?"

She walked back out again. "What's up? You found a way back, right?"

"Kind of," he said. "It'll be a few more days before you can go home, though."

"What? Why?" she asked.

"Well, when I went to check on the grate…" He related the encounter with the police officer.

"…and they're blocking off every route to the valley until they find you."

Tori suddenly felt very small. "I… I d-didn't come here to hurt anyone…"

"The cops don't know that. They think it's too much of a risk."

"How am I g-going to get home?"

"…I don't know yet," he replied truthfully. "But I'll find a way to get you back. I promise."

Tori felt a bit lightheaded, and started to sing to herself to calm down.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm not doing anything," she said.

"You were singing. Why were you singing?"

"It calms me down whenever I'm scared."

"Can you sing a bit louder for me?"

"Why?"

"You have a nice voice. And I want to hear the song."

She obliged, singing loud enough for him to hear.

" _You/With me/The world/Reach out and give it/To me/You need to hear our song/Give in/To me/You need to hallelujah when I rule when I rule/And I fuel the melody you better kid!_ "

Jake was smiling as she sang. When she finished, he burst out laughing. Tori blushed. "S-stop laughing! I'm not _that_ bad of a singer!"

"That's not what I'm laughing at," he replied. "Where'd you hear that song?"

"…I don't know," she said. "I just kind of… heard it… when I was younger… and I kind of memorized it. I just liked how it sounded."

Jake pulled his phone out of his pocket, tapped on it a couple of times, and plugged it in to a pair of speakers. A song started to play. "Sound familiar?"

Tori couldn't believe her ears. "That's the song! How did you guys get it?"

"That song is _really_ old," he replied. "The version you're hearing right now is a more modern version by the Squid Sisters. Doesn't it make you just get up and dance?"

"Oh, I'm not really the dancing type."

"You're joking, right? Neither am I, but I still can't fight the urge when I hear this song!" To prove his point, he got up and started dancing, if you could call it that. He was just flailing his body around in the most ridiculous ways.

"You're terrible!" Tori laughed.

"What do I care?" Jake replied, still dancing. "No one else is here but you! C'mon, let's be terrible together!" He grabbed her hand and pulled her onto her feet. She couldn't help it; first, she started tapping her foot, then nodding her head, and soon enough, she was jumping around the same way as Jake, laughing the whole time. They held hands and spun in circles as the song hit the crescendo, and when it ended, they flopped on the couch, sweating and panting, with huge grins on their faces.

"That…" said Tori. "was awesome."

Jake's grin grew wider. "The show ain't over yet." He set his phone on shuffle, and the music started up again.

They listened to a few other bands, but kept returning to the Squid Sisters. Every single one of their songs made Tori want to jump around. Eventually, though, they got tired, and Jake tuned his phone into the last song; by the Sisters, of course. It was slower and not as upbeat as the others, but it was still really nice.

Jake pulled her closer to him, and they slow danced to the song. He wasn't any better at slow dancing, but Tori didn't care. They held hands, with her head on his chest and his on top of hers, eyes closed, smiles on their faces.

When the song ended, Jake unplugged his phone and yawned. "Man, I am beat. I gotta turn in."

"Not yet," Tori said. "We're all sweaty from the dancing. We both need a shower."

"Good point," he said. "How long do you take in the shower?"

She blew out a breath. "I dunno. Ten minutes?"

"I can be in and out in five," he said. "Sit tight. I'll probably just go straight to bed after, though."

She nodded, and he went into his room, grabbed some cleaner clothes, and disappeared into the bathroom. A couple of minutes later, he was out, and Tori got up to enter the bathroom.

"Hey, Tori?" he asked.

"What's up?"

"You don't have any other clothes, do you?"

"Nope, just the armour."

"Do you want me to wash it for you while you're in the shower?"

"Sure, just gimme a second." She entered the bathroom and closed the door. A couple of seconds later, the door opened, and she pushed the armour into the hallway with her foot. Jake scooped it up, put it into the washer, added a bit of detergent, and started it up.

The shower was still running when they finished, so he opened the door, wrapped the clothes in a towel, and placed them on the floor. Tori emerged from the bathroom a few moments later.

Jake had waited in the living room for her. When the door opened, he turned around and saw her.

"Okay, now I'm REALLY going to turn in," he said. "Good night."

"Night," she responded. He started to walk to his room.

"Jake?"

He turned around. "Yeah?"

"…Never mind, it's stupid."

"No, you can tell me. What's wrong?"

She looked into his eyes. "…Can I sleep with you tonight?"

He stared at her. "What for?"

"Well, you kinda gave me a scare earlier, when you were telling me about that policeman, and I'd feel safer if I…"

He nodded. "Yeah, of course you can. Whatever you need."

She smiled. "Thanks."

Tori followed him into his room, and climbed into the bed. She yawned, and fell asleep almost instantly.

On the other side of the bed, Jake was wide awake. He looked over at Tori's sleeping form. Seeing that she was calm, he fell asleep soon after.

 **[A/N] I think I can safely call this a romance now.**

 **Boy, was this fun to write. The whole dance thing was what I had in mind for awhile.**

 **The two songs that I mentioned, of course, were Calamari Inkantation [aka the Chorus of Calamari County], and Maritime Memory, playing during the second half of the final boss fight and the credits, respectively.**

 **As for the lyrics, I'm not crazy enough to transcribe them myself, so I shamelessly stole them from PALogy. You'll be able to find him on YouTube.**

 **Hands down, the hardest part about writing this story is one thing; I'm following another story with the same basic plot, Octo Colors by Bang Rowdyruff (in my favourites list if you want to read it). I've had a couple of ideas for this one that I can't really use because he used them first, and if I did it'd be plagiarism. But I think I'll be OK. I've still got a few more ideas.**


	3. Chapter 3

**[A/N] Chapter 3 is here, along with a surprise visitor.**

Over the next few days, Tori and Jake settled into a routine; Jake would get up before Tori and start cooking breakfast for her, and soon after she would wake up. He would leave to check on the entrance to Octo Valley, and buy some lunch, while Tori read books and listened to music. When they finished eating, they'd play some video games for a while. A few hours later, Jake would cook dinner, and then they'd dance until their legs gave out before going to bed.

Jake was confident that it wouldn't be long before the police gave up on searching for her. Every day that the police were still guarding the grate, he'd reassure her that it would only be a few more days.

In truth, Tori didn't mind much. She really liked living with Jake, even if she still wanted to go back home.

Then, about a week after Tori first arrived in Inkopolis, they had a wake-up call.

Jake had just finished cooking some salmon for supper, and they were about to sit down and eat when there was a knock at the door. They both jumped.

"Who is it?" Jake called. He leapt out of his seat, grabbed Tori's hand, and started to drag her towards his room.

"Police!" said a voice. "Open up!"

Jake lightly pushed Tori into the closet, and shut the door before returning to the kitchen.

Opening the door, he revealed the same policeman that was guarding the entrance to the valley on the first day of Tori's stay.

"What can I do for you, officer?" he asked.

"Out of the way," said the policeman, pushing past Jake into the apartment. He started opening cupboards and drawers and emptying them out.

"Don't you need a warrant for that?" Jake asked calmly.

The officer silently shoved a piece of paper in Jake's face and continued tearing the apartment open.

"Great. Now why are you here?"

"Don't play dumb with me, kid," the officer replied, jabbing a threatening finger into Jake's face. "I've got reason to believe that Octoling is hiding out here. And I'm gonna find her if it takes all day."

Jake silently gulped. How did he know?

"You can look all you want, but you're not going to find anything," he stated.

"Still not giving her up, eh? You're making a big mistake."

"The only one mistaken here is you, _sir_. I'm the only one living here."

"Then why are there two plates on this table?" he asked.

"There was too much salmon for one plate."

The officer shook his head, and continued his search. Jake was getting more and more worried; the cop was very thorough. Jake's room was the last room he entered.

"She's gotta be in here…" he muttered to himself. He began pulling open drawers again.

For a moment, Jake considered giving her up. The policeman was going to find her; better she gets turned in, and he doesn't get arrested for hiding her.

He pushed the thought out of his mind. He made a promise and he was going to keep it.

The officer had reached Jake's closet. His hand reached for the handle, and Jake braced himself for what was coming. The door flew open.

But instead of a cowering Octoling, there was nothing. The closet was empty, except for Jake's clothes. Jake couldn't believe his eyes, and tried to keep the amusement from his face. The policeman only got angrier, and started violently pushing around Jake's clothes. Finding nothing, he finally conceded defeat.

"You got me this time, kid," he said. "But I know you're hiding something, and I'll get it out of you. Mark my words."

The officer finally left, slamming the door behind him. Jake breathed a sigh of relief, and returned to his room.

"Tori?" he called. "Where'd you go?"

She emerged from the closet as if nothing happened.

"Where were you hiding?"

"You've got an air vent in your closet," she said, pointing at the offending vent. "So I turned into an octopus and slipped through the grating."

Jake was speechless. "That's some quick thinking."

She grinned. "It's one of my many talents."

They started laughing. When it stopped, Jake actually thought about what happened.

"…You know," he said. "I don't think he was kidding. He's probably going to come back tomorrow. I'm not sure if you'll be safe here anymore. That guy's smarter than he looks."

The smile melted from Tori's face. "What am I gonna do, then?"

Jake pondered that for a while. Then it came to him. "I have an idea. Hold on and let me make some calls. Just sit tight in here."

Tori nodded, and Jake moved to the living room, taking out his phone. He dialed a number, and waited.

"Hey," he said into the receiver. "It's me, Jake. I've got a favour I need from you…"

{asterisks}

Before too long, there was another knock at the door. Jake pulled it open to reveal his three best friends; Cole, Adam, and Grace.

"Hey, man," said Cole. "What's up?"

"You guys didn't bring any weapons, right?" Jake asked.

"Just like you said," Grace replied.

"Great. Now, give me your bombs."

"What are you talking about?" asked Cole. "I don't have any bombs."

"Dude, you know you can't lie to me. Now hand 'em over." Cole reluctantly gave Jake the three Ink Mines hidden in his pockets.

"Now you, Adam."

Adam started to protest, but handed over his Burst Bombs.

"Alright, we're clean," he grumbled. "Now why couldn't we bring any weapons?"

"I'm getting to that," said Jake. "I need to show you something, but you guys have to promise me you're not gonna freak out."

"Don't you trust us?" Grace asked. "We're not going to freak out. I swear."

"Good," Jake replied. He looked over his shoulder. "Tori! You can come out now!"

"Tori?" Cole asked teasingly. "Ooh, looks like our sweet, innocent little Jake finally got himself a girl-"

His voice trailed off as Tori walked out of the hallway. The three Inklings looked at her with shocked expressions.

"This is Tori," Jake said, gesturing to her. "Tori, this is Cole, Adam, and Grace."

"H-hello," Tori said timidly.

For a moment, no one said a word. Then Adam spoke up.

"Jake. What is _that_ doing in your apartment?" he asked, disgusted.

" _She_ is hiding out here. She's the reason I called you guys over," he said with a glare.

"And why isn't it an ink stain on the ground right now?" Cole asked. Tori flinched at his harsh words.

"Because she's not here to hurt anyone-"

"Not here to hurt anyone?" Grace cried. "It's an Octoling! Why else would it be here?"

"She got lost."

"And ended up in Inkopolis?!"

"Tell them, please, Tori," Jake said.

She told the three of them what had happened since Agent 3's mission. They listened with skeptical looks on their faces.

"And why are we supposed to believe that?" Cole asked.

"Because I believe her," Jake said calmly. "You guys oughta know how I can spot liars by now."

"I don't believe one word of it!" Grace said. "It's obviously a huge lie! It's just trying to splat you when you least expect it!"

"If that were true," Jake countered. "Don't you think she would've done it by now? She's been here a week now."

"A WEEK?" Adam yelled. "You've been hiding this… this… _thing_ from us for a week?"

"Yes, I have, because I am trying to help her get home."

"You idiot!" Grace said. "If you help it get home, the rest of them will think they can just waltz in here whenever they want! You'll start another war!"

"You guys aren't going to convince me not to," he replied. "I already promised her I'd get her home. And I need your help."

"We are NOT helping you with this," Cole said coldly. "I oughta splat you right now-" He took a threatening step towards Tori.

Quick as lightning, Jake tripped him and shoved him back to the door. Cole sat on the ground, dazed.

"As I was saying…" Jake said. "I can't get her back to Octo Valley alone. We already had a policeman in here looking for her. I need your help."

All three glared at him. "…Fine," Adam spat out. "What do you need?"

"That's better," said Jake. "Now, that cop was persistent. He is not going to stop coming back here, and eventually he'll learn to check in _all_ of the hiding spots. That's where you guys come in. I need you guys to help me hide her."

"How about a trash can?" Cole asked mockingly. "It's perfect for something like that-"

Jake cut him off with a glare. " _As I was saying!_ I need you guys to hide her in your apartments."

They looked at him in disbelief. "You can't be serious," Grace asked.

"Dead serious," Jake replied.

"Jake, man," Adam said. "Friend or no, I'm not letting that thing into my house."

"I'm with him," Cole said. "There's just no way."

As the four of them argued, Tori stared at the floor. Just when she thought Inklings could be nice, this happened. She knew that Jake was right. That policeman was going to be back. He wouldn't be able to protect her. She'd never be able to get back home. Tears started dripping down her face. Eventually someone was going to find her. She was going to get splatted. Maybe it was going to be one of these three that did it. It was hopeless. She buried her head in her hands and started to cry louder.

Her crying silenced everyone in the room. Four heads turned towards her, and Jake quickly ran over and put his arms around her. "Tori, don't cry. It's going to be okay, I promise-"

"Let it cry!" Cole shouted. "What do you care? Come on, Jake! Just splat it and get this over with!"

"SHUT UP!" Jake yelled. Everyone jumped.

"What the hell is wrong with you guys?!" he exploded. "Can't you see how scared she is? She's absolutely terrified, and for good reason! She's totally helpless! If anyone else found her when she came here, they would've splatted her on sight! I've given her a place to stay _and_ promised her a way back home, and you guys are just treating her like trash! How would you feel, huh? How would any of you guys feel if it was you? Imagine if you got stuck in Octo Valley, and she was the one taking you in! And then she asks for a bit of help, and suddenly gets surrounded by demands to splat you! She's no different from the rest of us, so what the hell is your problem?!" The three Inklings stared at the floor as Tori continued to cry.

"You guys have never acted like this before," he said, a bit more calmly. "I get that I'm dropping a bomb here, but that was completely unnecessary. If you aren't going to help me, then fine. But when the police find her, I'll be blaming _you_." He glared at them again, and returned to comforting Tori.

There was a long silence, broken only by Tori's sniffling, which soon stopped as Jake held her.

"…You're right."

Jake looked around in surprise to see who spoke. It was Cole.

"Of course you're right. We had no excuse. Right, guys?" Adam and Grace nodded in response.

"You bet we'll help you." Jake grinned.

"Great!" he said. "Like I said, I need you guys to help me hide her until I can come up with a plan to get her home. The idea was to bring her to your apartments, and you'd be taking turns taking care of her for a day at a time. Are you OK with that?" Everyone nodded, including Tori.

"Good," he said. "Now, who wants her first?"

Silence.

"C'mon, guys. I need a volunteer."

The three other Inklings had a short, heated discussion, before pointing to Grace.

"Fantastic," said Jake. "Before we do anything, I need to lay down a few ground rules. First of all, I will be escorting Tori to her next destination every day. I can bribe anyone who sees her to keep quiet. Second," he said, turning toward Tori. "I want you to tell me everything that goes on in there. I'll be dropping by once a day to check up, and if _anything_ …" he said, turning back to the other Inklings. "If _anything_ happens, and I hear one word of you guys mistreating her, you'll have me to deal with. I don't expect her to be royalty, but just act as though it were me. Is that clear?" They nodded.

He turned on Adam and Cole. "And you creeps aren't touching her, you hear me? I don't want you guys doing anything weird."

Adam started to protest, but Cole just slapped him on the back of the head and said "Shut up, he's right."

"Alright, I think that covers everything," Jake finished. "I'll move her into Grace's apartment tomorrow. You should probably get a room ready."

"Aye aye!" Grace replied, with a salute.

"Dismissed!" Jake cried. The other Inklings left, shutting the door behind them.

"Sorry about that," Jake said. "They don't like Octarians much."

"No, it's okay," Tori replied.

"Once you get past that, though, they're pretty nice. I think you'll be okay until I can get you home."

"You're sure you can get me home?"

"Tactical genius is another of my talents," he replied.

They shared a smile, and went to bed.

 **[A/N] This is probably gonna be another really tough part, the whole friend thing. God knows how I'll get that done. I plan to devote a chapter to each one, and then another one or two about the grand escape, after which it'll be done, probably.**

 **I know the names could be punnier but shut up these are my actual friends here.**

 **Chapter 4 is following!**


	4. Chapter 4

**[A/N] WHOOPS I LIED**

 **I decided to add a bit of fluff here for the hell of it. Whet your appetites a little. Don't expect it to be too good. Or long. I'm working on the actual chapter 4 as we speak.**

Tori sat bolt upright, her eyes wide and fearful and her breathing heavy. Tears stained her face as she took deep breaths.

She had a nightmare, and a pretty terrible one. She looked at the clock next to her. It read 11:25.

She debated about waking Jake up for a while, before slowly getting out of the bed, blanket still wrapped around her, and walking to his room. She brought her fist up and rapped on the door a couple of times. "Jake?"

She could hear blankets moving around as he got out of bed. The door opened slowly, revealing Jake, in only a t-shirt and sweatpants. He rubbed at his face before looking at her.

"Tori?" he asked groggily. "What's wrong?"

"…Never mind," she said. "Sorry I woke you up."

"I'm awake now. You might as well tell me."

"…I had a nightmare," Tori replied. "Can I sleep with you again?"

"Yeah, of course," Jake said. "You know, you don't have to feel bad about waking me up. You know I'll get you anything you need."

"I know, but I just figured you'd want your sleep, and-"

"Seriously, don't worry about it. Your well-being is more important to me than a bit of sleep."

Tori smiled. "Okay." She climbed into the bed, still wrapped in her blanket.

"Do you want me to put that back for you?" he asked.

"No, it'll keep me nice and warm."

"Would you mind telling me what the nightmare was about? Or do you need to wait a bit?"

"Um…" Tori said. She drew a shaky breath. "I think I'm okay. I can tell you." 

"You and I were in the kitchen, eating, when your friends came in with that policeman. And they ratted me out, so he put a pair of handcuffs on me, and started pushing me out the door. And I tripped, and they laughed and started kicking me, and I was screaming for you to h-help me but you just sat there. And they kept kicking me, and you got up, and I thought you were going to help, b-but you just smiled and left, and I was screaming. And then you came back with a g-gun and pushed them away and started shooting at m-me and I was still screaming, asking you "why, why are you doing this, I thought you were helping me," and you just laughed and k-killed me…" She had managed to keep her composure during the story, but now she burst into tears.

Jake looked at her, shocked. When she started crying, he quickly wrapped his arms around her, trying to comfort her.

"It's okay," he said quietly, stroking her head. "Just let it out…"

"But it's not okay!" Tori cried suddenly, pulling away. "Don't you see? Something like this, I don't care if it was only a dream, I'm not sure if I can trust you anymore! How do I know that you aren't just going to turn me in? Or splat me when I least expect it? How do I know that you aren't just planning to keep me here for good?"

Jake was silent for a long time as he processed this.

"I'm not going to lie to you, Tori…" he started. "You don't. I could easily be planning to do any of those things. And you're probably right to be suspicious. I'd be the same way. But…" He took a breath.

"Tori, when I make a promise, I keep it, I assure you. There is nothing in this world that can stop me from helping you get back home. If you don't trust me while I'm doing that, then so be it. But that doesn't mean I'm going to stop helping you. Over the past week, you've become a truly wonderful friend, and I don't intend to do anything to get in the way of that. And I'm going to give you my word that you can trust me. I know that doesn't mean much right now, but it's all I've got. Look in my eyes." She obliged. He stared back into hers.

"Tori, I swear that I am going to do absolutely everything that I can to get you back home. Right now, you are the single most important thing in the world to me. And I'm not going back on my promise." He smiled at her.

Tori pondered this for a moment, before pulling him into a hug.

"So, you trust me, then?"

"Yeah," she replied. "I trust you. I don't think you were lying."

"Good."

They embraced for a while before the two slowly drifted off to sleep.

 **[A/N] What did I tell you.**

 **You know, listening to various Splatoon music on volumes that are too high for mortal ears really helps to get the creative juices flowing.**

 **Regardless, it's been four days since the last update, and I still want to keep this story going fairly quickly, so here you go.**

 **Kudos to Etriuswimbleton, who convinced me to write a bit of fluff. Thanks, buddy! This turned out better than I expected.**


	5. Chapter 5

**[A/N]** **So, here's chapter 5. This one is going to detail Tori's stay at Grace's home, after which Cole and Adam will follow, respectively. I'm so sorry that it took so long, but I suffer from a lack of motivation (and a bit of writer's block).**

 **I haven't really described any of my Inklings yet, so here you go.**

 **Jake is light blue, and wears an Orange Cardigan, Studio Headphones, and White Seahorses. He wields the N-ZAP '89.**

 **Grace is green, with a White Inky Rider, Bobble Hat, and Banana Basics. She uses a Krak-On Splat Roller.**

 **Cole is orange, with a Retro Gamer Jersey, 18K Aviators, and Zombie Hi-Horses. He prefers the Aerospray RG.**

 **Adam is yellow, with a Grape Tee, Fake Contacts, and Orange Lo-Tops. His weapon of choice is the Slosher.**

 **None of them really care about fashion sense, instead opting for whatever skills are most useful with their weapons.**

 **All of them, except Jake, have eyes that are the same colour as their tentacles.**

 **In addition, Tori doesn't have that little "slit" around her eyes like most Octolings, so Jake can always tell when it's her. She also hates wearing the goggles, and only does it if she absolutely has to.**

 **I was going to add that InsomniousNights, a reviewer, has drawn some art of Jake and Tori, and post it, but for SOME reason, it isn't formatting right in here, so if you want to see it, PM me.**

Neither Jake nor Tori got much sleep the previous night, despite Jake having comforted her after her nightmare. Both of them got up at around the same time, and very early. They still had their arms around one another, with Tori's head buried in Jake's chest.

As she awoke, having forgotten what had happened the previous night, Tori pulled Jake even closer, not really realizing what she was doing. Jake was fully awake at this point, but he didn't really mind.

A moment later, Tori woke fully, realized what she was hugging, and jerked away, her cheeks quickly turning a deep crimson. She could barely look Jake in the eye.

"What's wrong?" he asked. "It was just a cuddle. Nothing major."

"Y-You…" Tori stammered. "And me… I… w-was hugging you and… It almost felt like we had… Um… Oh, just forget it! I'm going back to sleep." She started to make her way to the guest room when Jake grabbed her shoulder.

"Whoa there," he said. "I gotta get you to Grace's, like, now."

"Aw, why? It's so early…"

"Exactly. The earlier I get you there, the fewer Inklings we'll run into on the way. With any luck, no one'll be out at this time. Let's go."

Tori grumbled something under her breath, and they left the apartment. True to his word, they didn't see anyone else on the way. When they arrived, Jake quietly knocked on the door.

"Grace!" he hissed. "Open up! It's Jake!"

After a moment, the door opened, revealing Grace, wearing nothing but a nightshirt and rubbing her eyes. Jake looked away pointedly.

She looked at Tori. "Oh, _right_ ," she yawned. "Come on in."

The two entered Grace's apartment and she closed the door behind them. Tori looked around.

Jake was hardly messy, but Grace's apartment was _spotless_. There was a kitchen and a living room that she could see, and she deduced that since the four friends lived in the same building, the apartments they lived in probably all had the same layout. The living room had a fancy-looking couch facing a small table, with a bookshelf and computer monitor behind it. A hallway connected the living room to what she assumed would be the bathroom, closet, and two bedrooms.

"Do you have her room ready?" Jake asked Grace. Grace nodded. "Good." He turned to Tori. "Are you gonna be okay? I'll be checking in this evening, probably."

"Don't worry about me," she replied. "Just go. Her and I aren't gonna get used to each other if you stand around here."

"Alright," he said, and left. Grace closed the door behind him before turning back to Tori.

"Want me to show you to your room?"

"Sure!"

Grace led Tori down the hallway to the bedroom.

As she predicted, it looked virtually identical in layout to the room she stayed in at Jake's apartment, with a large bed, bedside table, and three empty closets. But it was a lot brighter; the walls were neon green and the bedsheets were hot pink. Tori turned back to Grace, who was watching her expectantly.

"What do you think?" she asked.

"It's a bit… loud," Tori replied. Grace sprinted out of the room. Tori could hear some shuffling around, and what sounded like a few items being dropped on the floor. A moment later, she came back with her roller.

"I can change the colour if you want!" Grace said, a bit too enthusiastically.

"No, that's okay!" Tori said quickly. "Can I have some… duller sheets, though?"

Grace sprinted out of the room again, and came back with the roller replaced by a set of plain blue bedsheets.

"Thanks," Tori said, reaching out for them.

Grace jerked them away. "No!" she exclaimed. "Don't bother yourself with this. I'll do it! You just make yourself at home! Wherever you want! You can even go in my room if you want to!"

"Okay…" Tori said slowly, and made her way back to the living room. A few minutes later, Grace came out, fully dressed now.

"Sorry if I seem a bit crazy!" she said. "I don't really have any female friends. It's just the guys. I'm really excited to have you staying here. Once I got past the whole Octoling… thing…" Her voice trailed off, and she bowed her head and started sniffling.

Tori could see tears dripping onto Grace's clothes. "Whoa, are you crying?" Tori asked. "Please don't cry!"

"I-I'm so sorry…" Grace said quietly. "We were so terrible to you, a-and I don't d-deserve to have you stay here…"

Tori was reminded of her nightmare, and shuddered. They sat in an awkward silence for a moment, as Tori desperately tried to think of something to say.

"Hey," Tori said. Grace looked up.

"I'm not gonna lie, I'm still a bit scared of you guys. But, I don't need to be. I can push past this, and forgive you, because I get why you acted like that. And you don't need to cry. I forgive you, I promise."

"R-Really?" Grace asked, tears staining her face.

"Really," Tori said with a grin.

Grace brushed away her tears and smiled back.

"Alright!" Tori said, clapping her hands together. "Do you have any food here? I'm starving."

Grace got up, walked into the kitchen, and pulled out a small package of crabby cakes. "Here, you can munch on one of these while I make you something. Anything in particular?"

"Ooh, can you make pancakes?!" Tori asked excitedly. "Jake made me some on my first day here and I absolutely LOVED them."

"One stack of pancakes, coming right up!" Grace cheered.

A few minutes later, they were ready. Grace's pancakes weren't quite as good as Jake's, but that didn't stop them from being delicious. Tori devoured them in a matter of minutes.

Once everything was put away, the two returned to the couch and sat for a moment in silence.

"So!" Tori said. "What do you do around here?"

"Well, I do a lot of things," Grace replied. "What did you do while you were living with Jake?"

"Routine. We played games, read books. …Danced a little."

"You danced with him?!" Grace asked incredulously. "That… That's impossible! I've never seen him dance before! He'll sing to his heart's content, but he never dances a single step."

"Well, it wasn't really dancing," Tori said. "We just kind of jumped around. It'd be a bit of a stretch to say it was actual dancing."

"Then I'll show you some _real_ moves," Grace said, getting up. "Any songs you like?"

"I don't know the name, but it goes like this…" Tori said, before beginning to sing her song.

"Oh, I know that song!" Grace said. "Alright, watch and learn."

Grace typed away on her computer, plugged in some speakers, and let the music play as she danced along.

Tori was mesmerized. Grace moved perfectly with the beat of the music, swaying and moving gracefully, expertly keeping time. It was as if she had become one with the song flowing around them. Tori was almost sad when the song ended, and found herself applauding.

Grace blushed and gave a short bow. "Thanks. But there's a lot better than me out there."

"I wouldn't know," Tori replied. "I haven't seen them. And I think that was amazing."

Grace blushed harder and sat back down. "I'm not used to getting compliments like that, thanks."

"Seriously?" Tori asked. "I don't believe a word of that."

"It's all true," Grace said. "Like I said, there's a lot better than me."

"Hmm…" Tori mulled that over for a moment. "Hey, do you think you could teach me how to dance like that? Maybe I could show Jake when I get the chance."

Grace got a devious smirk on her face. "Ooh, trying to impress your man, huh?"

Tori blushed furiously. "What? N-no! It's not like that, I just…" She trailed off, hiding her face.

Grace nodded knowingly. "Don't worry, I get it. Believe me, I get it."

"I-I don't like him l-like that! We're just f-friends!" Tori said, blushing even harder.

Grace laughed. "I'd be happy to teach you. C'mon, no time like the present."

For the next few hours, they listened to the song on repeat, as Grace attempted to teach Tori how to dance to it. She was fairly clumsy at first, but under Grace's direction, quickly learned the dance. After a few extra practices, she was almost as good as Grace.

"Wow, you're a real quick study," Grace noted. "You could probably top me, with enough practice."

"You really think so?" Tori asked.

"You bet I do! You've got some real talent. Jake'll be impressed when you show him. Maybe he'll return the favour with some… moves of his own."

"Oh, shut up!" Tori said. "How long will it take to convince you that _it's_ _not like that_?!"

"I'll believe you when I see Jake with another girl-"

"Don't even joke about that!" Tori interrupted. "He wouldn't do that to me- EEP!" She quickly covered her mouth with her hands and blushed.

"Ah-ha!" Grace cried triumphantly. "So you _do_ like him!"

Tori shushed her quickly. "Don't tell the whole city! It's just a… a crush. It's not like I'm in love with him or anything."

"Oh, don't worry," Grace said, winking. "I won't tell a soul. Can I ask you a question, though?"

"What is it?"

"Why Jake? He's not really… I don't know. I mean, he's a great friend and all, and a cool guy to hang out with. But he doesn't seem like he could really be much more than a friend to anyone. That's how I see him, anyway. What do you see in him?"

Tori thought about that for a moment. "Hmm… He took me in, for one thing. No one else would've done that. And then I got to know him a bit more, and… he seemed like a really great guy. He's kind, and he's funny, and he's easy to talk to… I just kind of… like him. I know that doesn't really answer your question, but…"

Grace nodded. "No, I get it. You like him for the same reason he's our friend." She paused. "Good luck trying to make it work, though."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know if it's come up yet, but he _hates_ it when anyone tries to touch him. If someone so much as taps his shoulder without permission, he'll usually try to run and hide."

"Seriously? Why?"

"I dunno…" Grace replied with a shrug. "I guess he's just not really used to it. You'd be better off asking him."

"Yeah, I'll have to do that."

Over the next several hours, the girls engaged one another in conversation, getting to know each other a bit more. Grace didn't stop teasing Tori about her crush once.

They didn't keep track of the time, so when Tori finally looked at the clock, she wasn't really surprised to see that it read 5:12.

"Wow. We missed lunch," she noted.

"That doesn't happen very often around here," Grace said.

"On that note, I'm getting hungry again. Whatcha got?"

"How about some catfish burgers?"

"Sure, why not?"

Grace dug a couple of burgers out of the freezer, and got to work cooking. They were done about fifteen minutes later, and they sat down to eat.

They had just finished when there was a knock at the door. "Grace? It's Jake."

Grace opened the door, and he came into the apartment. "Hey," he said.

"Hey," Grace replied. "Do you want me to leave you two alone, or…?"

"That isn't necessary-"

"Actually," Tori spoke up. "Could you, please? I'd like to talk to Jake in private."

Grace smirked at her and nodded. "Certainly. I'll be in my room if you need me." She disappeared down the hall.

Jake watched her leave, before turning to Tori. "What's wrong? Did something happen?"

"No, nothing much. We just got to know each other for most of the day. But eventually we started talking about you…"

"Oh boy," Jake sighed. He took a seat. "What kind of horror stories did she tell you?"

"Well, no stories," Tori replied. "But she said that you hate being touched."

Jake visibly paled, and raised an eyebrow. "How did that topic come up?"

Thinking quickly, Tori replied. "She was talking about how hard it was for you to make friends. So, is that true?"

Jake nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, it's true."

Tori could see he was getting uncomfortable. "We don't have to talk about it if you don't want to…"

"No, it's fine," Jake replied. He was almost shaking. "Ask whatever you want. I don't mind."

Tori was unsure, but pressed on anyway. "Why do you hate touch so much?"

"Well, when I was younger…" he began, taking a deep breath. "I didn't like the idea of Turf War as much as I do now. I thought it was too much like real war, and I didn't want to participate. And I was the kid who liked reading books more than playing outside. So when I actually left my house, I got picked on. A lot. There was name calling, and the kids who lived just down the street, they hated me. They'd hit me, to the point where there was more of me bruised than not. I didn't go out of the house if I could avoid it, but they'd catch me on the way to school. I even contemplated suicide for a while. Then my family moved, and I didn't have to worry about them anymore, but… well, that's what happened. And I don't like anyone to touch me. I just get scared it'll happen again."

Tori looked at him, wide-eyed, and covered her mouth with her hands. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry… Can I give you a hug?"

Jake nodded, and she embraced him. He started crying. When they pulled apart, he wiped his tears away and smiled at her.

"Thanks, Tori. Any more questions?"

"What happens when someone tries to touch you without permission?"

"I run and hide, unless I see it coming and the person happens to be a friend."

"I'm your friend, right?"

"Yes, you are."

She reached out and grabbed his wrist. Jake flinched. "What does that feel like? Does it hurt?"

"It doesn't hurt. I'm just… sensitive. All over."

She poked his neck. "What about that?"

"Same thing. It feels kind of tingly."

She lightly touched his lower back, and he cried out in pain. Tori quickly pulled her hand away. "I thought you said it didn't hurt!"

"It's different around there."

"Can I see?"

He pulled his shirt up a little and turned his back to her. There was a massive bruise that took up almost all of Jake's lower back, all shades of black and blue.

"…What happened?" Tori asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Jake turned back towards her. "That was a particularly bad day. A couple of guys who lived next door, they were chasing me toward a hill, and when they caught up to me, they shoved me down, and I curled up into a little ball and bounced all the way down the hill. It was a paved road, too."

"Does it still hurt? Even when I don't touch it?"

"A little. But I can manage."

Tori digested that for a while. "That's terrible."

"Yeah, it was," Jake said bitterly. "I still can't believe I made it through my childhood." He rubbed his face with his hands.

"…I wish I knew what to say to help you."

"Don't worry about it," Jake replied, somewhat sadly. "No one's been able to yet. I'm not sure if anyone ever will. It's nothing to worry about. And as long as I can just put on my happy face, I'll be fine."

"How can you be okay after something like that?" Tori asked. "You said yourself that you contemplated suicide! How'd you bounce back?"

"I didn't. It still kills. If I'm lucky, I can keep my mind off of it for a while, but it always comes back. It never completely goes away. And it definitely doesn't help in… other areas."

"What do you mean? You seem like a great battler."

"That's not what I'm talking about. In a Turf War, it's all reflex. My mind goes totally blank, and I just focus on what I'm doing, and I'm totally fine for an absolutely _heavenly_ three minutes. But I meant in terms of dating. I'm the only one of my friends who's never had a girlfriend, and you just heard why. It's just not something that I can handle."

Tori wanted nothing more than to confess her feelings, right there, right then, tell him that it _was_ possible, and he just had to look closer, but she knew he wouldn't accept it. Jake would think she was just trying to be sympathetic. This wasn't the right time.

"You know, though…" he started. "It's helped a little, talking about it, just now. I know my issues aren't gonna go away like that, but just talking to a friend really helped. I guess I never really thought about doing it before, but thanks, Tori. …You got any more questions?"

"No, you answered them all. I'm glad I helped. Let me know if I can do it again, though."

Jake smiled at her. "Will do." He stood to leave.

"Grace! You can come back out now!" he called.

She emerged from the hallway, with a smirk on her face.

"You heard all that, didn't you?" he asked.

"No, I didn't hear a sound," she replied. "I was in my room."

"Well, it was good to know that you're doing well, Tori," Jake said, smiling at her. He had already returned to his normal persona. Tori couldn't feel the same way.

"…Yeah," she replied, staring at the floor.

"I'll be by tomorrow morning to pick her up," Jake said to Grace.

"Yeah, I got it," Grace replied. "See ya."

"Bye," Jake said with a wave. He left, shutting the door behind him.

Grace immediately sat down next to Tori. "So, what'd you guys talk about?" She took note of Tori's dejected face. "What's wrong? Did you tell him about your crush? Did he turn you down?!"

"No…" Tori said. "No, that's not what happened. I… I need to go lie down…"

"Already?" Grace asked, looking at a clock. "It's barely nine."

"Yeah, I need to think about… some stuff," Tori said, already getting up.

Grace watched her leave, puzzled, but decided not to press the issue.

Tori, meanwhile, flopped down into her bed, shocked beyond words at what she had just heard. It took a long time for her to get to sleep that night.

 **[A/N] I'll let this chapter speak for itself.**


	6. Chapter 6

**[A/N] I know that the story's been getting pretty dark lately, but I think it'll lighten up again toward the end, probably.**

 **Cole, you might not want to read this one. You'll probably end up hating me.**

Because of the outrageous time that she had to wake up the previous day, Tori would have liked to sleep in, but she had no such luck. At about four in the morning, there was a knock on the door. Tori groaned.

She could hear Grace open up the door, heard Jake's voice, and she slowly got up out of bed, stretching.

She left the room, and saw Jake.

"You ready to go?" he asked.

"Yeah," she replied. Then she snapped her fingers. "Oh! Wait!"

Tori walked over to Grace, and whispered something in her ear.

"Whoa, really?" Grace replied. "You know, that's not a bad idea… Yeah, okay."

Jake looked at them, puzzled. "What was that about?"

"Girl stuff," replied Tori and Grace in unison.

Jake shrugged. "Alright. C'mon, Tori, we gotta go."

Tori nodded, waved at Grace, and left the apartment.

"We got a bit of a walk ahead of us. Cole lives on the other side of the building. We should probably hurry."

Tori followed silently. They were almost to Cole's apartment when Jake asked "Are you okay? You haven't said a word since we left."

She smiled at him. "You amaze me."

"What do you mean?"

"I couldn't stop thinking about what you told me yesterday. And the way that you can just act like nothing is wrong… it's amazing. You must really care about the people around you."

Jake scratched the back of his head. "I don't want anyone to feel like they have to worry about me, that's all. I'd hate to drag down my friends because I can't control my own issues." They had reached Cole's apartment, so the conversation ceased as Jake knocked on the door.

"Cole?" he said quietly. "It's Jake. I brought Tori."

The door swung open almost immediately to reveal Cole, dressed only in a pair of boxers. Tori blushed and looked away.

"Do ANY of you sleep with clothes on?!" Jake hissed.

Cole yawned, flipped him off, and gestured for the two to come inside.

Compared to Jake and Grace's apartments, Cole's was a pigsty. Clothes were scattered all around the floor, and there was a faint smell in the air. Tori wrinkled her nose. The nearby living room held a couch with many holes in it, facing a huge TV, with multiple video game systems plugged in. A small window that looked like it had never been washed was on the far wall.

"You are hopeless," Jake commented. "You couldn't even clean before she got here? Get your ass in here and help me pick this place up."

Cole grudgingly helped Jake remove the clothes from their scattered positions around the apartment, as well as clean the window. By the time they were done, it looked immaculate. There was nothing that could be done about the smell, though.

"You know, I'm starting to wonder if this was a bad idea," Jake said.

"No, I'll be okay," Tori said. Cole didn't say a word.

"Alright, if you say so. I'll be in tonight to check up on you. Bye."

"See you later," Tori replied. Jake left, shutting the door behind him.

Cole instantly rounded on Tori. "Let me get something straight right now. I still don't trust you. If it weren't for Jake being such a good friend, I wouldn't be doing this. So count yourself lucky that I'm even letting you stay here."

Tori was taken aback a bit, but nodded. "I'm okay with that. As long as I can stay, at least."

Cole nodded. "Here, I'll show you to your room."

He led her to the same guest room. The bed was noticeably smaller than in the previous two apartments, but she'd still be able to sleep in it.

"Any questions?" he asked gruffly.

"Two, actually," Tori replied. "First, do you have Jake's phone number?"

"What, do you not trust me?"

"You don't trust me," she pointed out. "What reason do I have to trust you?"

Cole returned to the living room, scrawled Jake's number down on a piece of paper, and gave it to her.

"Second question, what do you do for fun?"

"I don't actually come here very often," Cole responded. "Most of my time is taken up in battles. But I guess _that's_ out the window for today."

"So you don't have _anything_ to do around here?"

"Only reason I come to my apartment at all is to sleep and eat. Rest of the time, I'm in the plaza. Sorry. I got some video games, though."

"Hmph. Got any food?"

"Of course. Hungry?"

"Of course."

They returned to the kitchen, and Cole got breakfast going. A few minutes later, he served up toast. Tori looked at him incredulously.

"I can't really cook," he said sheepishly. "Most of the stuff in my fridge is experimental. And I wouldn't want to try something new on a guest. My only test subject is me."

"That seems fair," Tori said. She bolted down her toast, which was surprisingly satisfying, and went to sit on the couch.

"Wanna play a game?" she asked.

"Against you? It wouldn't even be a contest," Cole scoffed.

"I may surprise you," Tori replied. "I beat Jake a couple of times when I was living with him."

"Really?" Cole asked, arching an eyebrow. "Then bring it on, Octo-girl."

For the next few hours, they fought one another vigorously in Squid Racer. To Cole's immense surprise, Tori was quite good. She won just as many sets as he did, and eventually pulled ahead. However, he tired of being beaten, and shut the game off.

"Aw, come on!" Tori cried. "You're such a wimp."

"Hmph. Call me whatever you want," he said. "I don't care." He paused. "I can see why Jake took such a shine to you, though."

She raised an eyebrow. "Did I seriously just gain your trust by being good at video games?"

"I think you did. That tends to be how I gauge people."

Tori shrugged. "Okay."

"But that's not what I meant."

Cole slid closer to her, and Tori recoiled a bit. He grinned. Her eyes widened, and she jumped off of the couch.

"W-what are you doing?" she asked nervously.

"What does it look like?" He got up, pinned her against the wall, and ran a hand along her exposed stomach. She shuddered, and her eyes darted wildly around the room.

He leaned in to try and kiss her, but she ducked out of the way, grabbed a nearby phone, and ran into the guest room. She locked the door and shoved a couple of clothes hangers underneath it. She shuddered again.

Quickly, she dialed Jake's number into the phone and waited for him to pick up. After the third ring, he did.

"Hello?" he asked.

"Jake," she said urgently. "You need to come up here now."

"Tori?" he asked. His voice took on a frantic tone. "Are you okay? What's wrong? Is Cole with you?"

"Just come up here! Please, please come up here!" she begged. "I'm still in the apartment!"

"I'm on my way," Jake replied, and hung up.

Tori sat against the door and waited.

{asterisks}

It only took a few minutes before she heard a knock on the door. Cole opened it. "Jake? What are you doing here?"

"Tori called me," he replied. "…Why didn't you know? And where is she?"

Tori wrenched the clothes hangers out from under the door and burst into the living room. She quickly ran over to Jake and hid behind him.

"Tori? What happened?" Jake asked.

Tori pointed a shaking finger at Cole. "H-he was coming on to me!" Jake's eyes widened while Cole's narrowed.

"He WHAT?!" Jake yelled.

"Oh, come on!" Cole said, annoyed. "There was nothing stopping me! You shouldn't make such a big deal of it!"

"Nothing stopping you?" Jake asked dangerously. "What was the ONE thing I told you not to do? I _specifically_ said that I didn't want you touching her!"

"Why?" Cole asked, folding his arms. "Do you just want to keep her all to yourself?"

Jake faltered for a second, before returning to his anger. "You know _full well_ that is not the damn reason! How the hell did you think this was okay, you sleazeball?!"

Cole started an explanation, but Jake stopped him. "You know what? Forget it. I don't want to hear a word out of you. I'm taking her back to my apartment."

He had a backpack on him, so Tori turned into an octopus and hid herself inside of it. Jake slammed the door behind him and stormed back to his apartment.

When they arrived, Tori emerged from the backpack with a scared look on her face. "Jake? Are you okay?"

"No," he said angrily. "I'm not. God, I can't believe he would do something like that… I thought he was my friend."

"He might still be," Tori said, tentatively. "How long have you known him?"

Jake thought for a moment. "I think it's coming up on… five or six years now."

"And do you think that's worth throwing away because of what he did to me?"

"I don't know," Jake replied. "Part of me knows you're right, and the other part wants to punch him in the face."

"Which part are you going to listen to?"

"I don't know. I'll decide later. Anyway, you aren't going back there."

"I didn't want to."

"And it might not be a good idea to send you to Adam's, either…"

"So can I just stay at Grace's apartment?"

"Yeah, that seems like a good idea."

"…Can I stay here tonight, though?"

He stared at her. "What for?"

"I know I can trust you. And I really need someone I can trust right now."

"Let me guess. You want to sleep with me again, too."

"Can I?"

Jake nodded. "Sure."

They sat in silence for a moment.

"So, are you gonna forgive him?" Tori asked.

"Yeah, I probably should," Jake replied. "I need him for your escape, at the very least."

Jake picked up his phone, and disappeared into his bedroom. From outside, Tori could hear him talking. A few minutes later, he came back out.

"Well?" she asked.

"We're all good," he replied with a smile. "And he also gets why you don't want to go back."

"Good to know," Tori replied.

Silence again.

"Hey, I have a question," Tori said. "Why can't you just bring me back home right now? I mean, you have that backpack. I could just hide in it and we could slip back into the valley while no one's looking."

"I thought about that," Jake replied. "And I decided it wasn't a good idea. You see, if I sneak you back undercover, then the cops won't know that you're gone. We need to make a big spectacle of ourselves, because that way, they'll know we brought you back, and my apartment can be left in peace."

"Alright, then. What's the plan?"

"I'm almost finished drawing it up. When it's ready, I'm gonna call all you guys here to make sure you've got it down."

"Sounds like a plan," Tori said. "On that note, I'm getting hungry."

"I got some hot dogfish in the fridge that I can fire up. Sound good?"

"Yeah."

Ten minutes later, the food was ready. They scarfed it down quickly; both were quite hungry. When they were finished, they sat back on the couch.

"Is there anything you want to do?" Jake asked.

Tori thought for a moment. "Oh! Yesterday, Grace taught me how to dance!"

"You learned how to dance?" Jake said. "I thought what we had was special!"

Tori stuck her tongue out at him. "Anyway, I want to show you. I think I'm pretty good.

Jake smiled. "Alright, let's see it. Is it the song I think it is?" Tori nodded, and he tuned his phone into her song, and let it play as she danced along.

From the moment the song began, Jake was amazed at what he saw. Tori performed the dance that Grace had taught her flawlessly, moving fluidly with the rhythm. Jake couldn't believe his eyes.

When the song ended, all he could say was "Wow…"

Tori grinned at him. "You liked it that much?"

"That was amazing!" Jake cried. "That was, without a doubt, one of the best dances I've ever seen!"

Tori blushed. "Thanks. But you should be complimenting Grace. She was the one who taught me."

"Yeah, but you were the one who performed. In my mind, that deserves a bit of congratulations."

The blush deepened.

"Thanks for the performance, but I gotta go to bed," Jake said, stretching.

"I'll join you," Tori replied, and followed him into his room.

They climbed into the bed and fell asleep almost instantly.

 **[A/N] DON'T HATE ME COLE**

 **This chapter seemed kind of uneventful to me, but the last three are gonna make up for it, believe me.**


	7. Chapter 7

**[A/N] Aw yeah, we're almost done! I can't wait!**

Tori returned to Grace's apartment early the next day, with the promise from Jake that she'd soon be home. Tori used the time she had to have Grace follow through with her own plan.

Jake kept his promise. Two days later, he called everyone to his apartment, telling them that he had finally worked out the plan.

It didn't take long for them all to arrive.

"Alright," Jake said, laying out a big piece of paper. "The entrance to the valley is here. Our starting positions are going to be…"

He described the plan in great detail, making sure there was not a single point that he had missed.

"…and Tori gets back home and we come back here. Any questions?"

The other four looked astonished at how extensively he had planned the escape, and could do nothing but shake their heads, until Tori spoke up.

"I have one," she said. "You don't want to be known as the four Inklings who helped an Octoling get back home. You'd be lynched. Do you think you should hide your faces?"

"…That's a good point, actually," Jake mused. "…You've all got gas masks, right?" Grace, Cole, and Adam all nodded. "Problem solved. Any more questions?"

No one had any.

"Alright," Jake said. "Then we're all set. The plan goes in motion tomorrow morning. Six o'clock. Tori, are you gonna be okay with your job? You don't have to if you don't want to."

"No, I'm good," she replied. "Think of it as paying you back for helping me."

"Perfect," Jake said, nodding. "Six o'clock. Make sure all of you are in your positions, and we can get her home."

 **[A/N] I apologize for how INCREDIBLY SHORT this chapter is, but I wanted to keep a bit of suspense. Just give me a bit of time and I'll get the** _ **good**_ **chapters ready.**


	8. Chapter 8

**[A/N] You all better get ready! It begins!**

At six o'clock sharp the next morning, everybody got into their positions. Tori peaked out at the entrance to the valley from a side alley. There were four policemen guarding it, and one of them was the one that had been in Jake's apartment. She gulped.

Tori looked back at the apartment wistfully. Part of her really didn't want to be here right now…

But the other part knew that was silly. She needed to do this. If she didn't do anything, she'd never get home.

Tori steeled her nerves, and walked into the open. She could distantly hear the sound of four Super Jumps.

The cops noticed her and raised their weapons. All four had Splattershots. "Hands in the air!" one shouted.

They barely had time to grip the triggers on their weapons when Jake and his friends landed in front of her in crouched positions. They all wore gas masks, but she could tell they were smiling. The one in the front straightened, and she heard Jake's voice say two words.

"Bring it."

And the chaos began. There was ink flying everywhere, a firefight breaking out between the two parties, and Tori needed to duck out of the way quickly so she didn't get splatted. She could see Adam and Grace blocking the policemen's shots with bigger globs of ink from their weapons, while Jake and Cole took on a more offensive role, pushing the cops away with rapid shots, but they didn't move away from the grate.

One of the policemen was more persistent than the others; he ignored the ink flying around him and went straight for Tori. She tried to run away, but he cornered her.

Just when she thought all of their efforts were for nothing, Jake appeared out of nowhere and fought him away. "I don't think so!"

Tori stayed in her safe place as she watched everything unfold around her. It was nothing short of a gauntlet of ink; there was no way that she'd be able to get through it, and she was scared.

However, she noticed something; one by one, the Inklings' tentacles started to ripple and glow on their heads. She wasn't the only one who noticed; Jake looked up and saw it, too. He started barking out commands at once.

"Grace! You know what to do! Cole, Adam, get ready!"

As soon as Jake said it, Grace transformed into the Kraken. The policemen scattered at the sight of her, clearing a path toward the grate. Jake looked around at Tori and gestured for her to follow, which she did, running as fast as her legs could carry her toward the grate. When she got there, the three guys readied Inkstrikes on their backs.

"Grace! Fall back! We got 'em!"

Grace swam back to the grate as the guys set off their Inkstrikes around the entrance. When the tornadoes of ink disappeared, all five of them were gone.

{asterisks}

When they came out of the grate, Tori was delighted to see that they were back in Octo Valley. They had finally made it!

As soon as Jake came out, he tore off his gas mask and swept Tori up into a hug. "We did it!" he laughed.

When he put her down, he said "Alright, which way do you live? Those cops could be following us."

"You don't need to worry about that," Cole snickered. "I lined the passage with Ink Mines. They aren't gonna make it here anytime soon."

"Oh!" Jake said in surprise. "Then I guess we can take our time. Nice move."

Cole bowed. "Thank you, good sir."

"And you guys were awesome in there!" Jake said to the other two Inklings. "That was the best battling I've seen in my life! We gotta do that again!"

As Jake was congratulating his friends, Tori was looking at her surroundings with a sad smile. She was back, but…

"Tori?" Jake asked, snapping her back to reality. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Tori replied. "Yeah, I'm good." She looked into his face. "Jake, I-"

"So, where do you live?" he asked. "I don't really see anywhere that someone could stay- wait, were you saying something? Sorry, I'm kind of excited."

Tori shook her head. "…No, it was nothing. Forget it. And I could just Super Jump home from here."

"Okay, good," Jake said. "…You know, I'm really gonna miss you."

"You are?"

"Well, yeah. You're a great friend, and it's kinda hard to see you off. I mean, it's not like I could visit you or anything. It feels good that we finally got you home, but I… don't want to say good-bye. No matter how much I know I have to."

"Well, I can't stay in Inkopolis," Tori replied. "This is the only option. I don't like it any more than you do, but it's the way it has to be."

Jake's eyes filled with tears. "Y-yeah, you're right… Dammit, I t-told myself I wasn't gonna cry here…"

Tori laughed, even as tears began to drip down her face. "It's okay…" she replied.

"It doesn't f-feel okay," Jake said, and pulled her into a hug.

"I know," she replied, returning the hug. "Believe me, I know…"

He whispered something that she couldn't hear.

"What was that?" Tori asked, pulling away.

"…Don't go, then," he said.

Tori was astonished. "What?"

"Don't go. Stay with me. Please, please stay with me."

"Jake, I… I can't. You know I can't."

"You don't know until you try," Jake begged. "I can work something out. I'm good at that. But, please… please don't leave me."

"I'm sorry, but… I have to."

"Tori, I l-"

"Don't say it!" Tori said firmly. Jake recoiled slightly.

"I'm sorry," she said. "But please, don't say it. It'll just make things harder. I… I have to go now. I'll miss you. I'm so sorry…"

"No," Jake said. "No, you can't go! Please don't go! Tori, I-"

"I'm sorry," Tori interrupted, her voice barely a whisper. "I really am. But you know I can't stay." She lightly pressed her lips to his cheek, and slowly backed away.

"Good-bye," she said, before Super Jumping into the distance.

Jake dropped to his knees, and touched his cheek where Tori had kissed him. Tears started flowing down his face before he pulled his gas mask back on and started to walk back to the grate.

Grace approached him. "Jake? Are you okay?"

He shook her off and kept walking, slipping back through the grate and storming up to his apartment. When he got there, he slammed the door, slid onto the floor, and started sobbing.

Elsewhere, in Octo Valley, Tori finally returned to her home and dropped to the floor, miserable. Neither one got any sleep that night.


	9. Chapter 9

It had been two weeks since Tori returned, and it still didn't feel like home.

Tori looked around her somewhat dingy-looking house. Same old kitchen, living room, bedroom. Same old everything. Nothing else. It was almost bare.

She knew this wasn't where she belonged.

She wanted to be happy that she finally returned home, but she this wasn't her home anymore. That had changed when she was in Inkopolis.

Just thinking about the _city_ made tears appear in her eyes. She missed it terribly. She missed everything about living there. She missed the pancakes, the music, the guest room bigger than her house.

But most of all, she missed Jake.

It made her heart ache. Tori missed everything about him; the way he'd comfort her whenever she needed it, his ridiculous dancing, even just not having him _around_ made her tear up.

And the way she _rejected_ him when they returned. God, it was killing her. She was so _stupid_. She didn't even listen to what he was trying to say, she didn't tell him how she felt… And for what? Looking back on it, she realized that she didn't even _want_ to come back. She wanted to stay with him, and she came back anyway… That was the worst part, that she still came back. She thought she had a good reason, but it was now that she realized it wasn't. There hadn't been anything stopping her from staying with him.

And there wasn't anything stopping her now. She was gonna go back there.

She checked the time. 6:42 pm.

This was it. In twelve hours, she'd be back with Jake.

{asterisks}

It had been two weeks since Tori left, and nothing felt quite right.

Jake sat on the couch and buried his head in his hands while he went through the events of that day for what felt like the millionth time, sobbing all the while.

" _Tori, I l-"_

" _Don't say it!" Tori said firmly. Jake recoiled slightly._

" _I'm sorry," she said. "But please, don't say it. It'll just make things harder. I… I have to go now. I'll miss you. I'm so sorry…"_

" _No," Jake said. "No, you can't go! Please don't go! Tori, I-"_

" _I'm sorry," Tori interrupted, her voice barely a whisper. "I really am. But you know I can't stay." She lightly pressed her lips to his cheek, and slowly backed away._

" _Good-bye," she said, before Super Jumping into the distance…_

He touched his cheek where her lips had been. He shouldn't have listened to her. He should've told her how he felt. He should've told her how he felt, and now he'd never get the chance again…

Since Tori had returned home, Jake hadn't left his apartment. As it was, he barely left his bed. He knew that his friends were worried about him. They had noticed what was wrong, and stopped by every couple of days to bring him food. He appreciated their gesture, but Jake wasn't sure if he'd ever recover from this. Tori took up all of his thoughts, and he rarely attempted to stop thinking about her.

Jake let out a long sigh, and flopped back down in his bed.

{asterisks}

Tori looked at the clock. It read 5:54 am. That would be enough time to get there.

She took one last look around the house. She knew that a part of her would miss it, but this was far more important.

She walked out of the door and Super Jumped toward the grate leading to Inkopolis. Without hesitation, she swam through it, taking the now-familiar journey to the city. She popped out at the other end. Tori cautiously surveyed her surroundings before remembering that the area would be completely deserted.

She had only taken it twice, but she remembered. Tori walked down the path through the alley that took her to Jake's apartment. She was forced to remind herself that there was nobody awake at this hour, and she didn't need to worry about being found.

Finally, she reached the door to Jake's apartment. Tori knocked on it without hesitation.

It took a moment, but the door slowly swung open. Jake was standing in the doorway. His face quickly changed from annoyance to disbelief.

"Tori?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. "Is that you?"

"Yeah," she replied. "It's me."

He quickly ushered her inside and shut the door behind her. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to apologize," she said. "I shouldn't have left. That was the biggest mistake I've made in my life, and I wanted to say that I'm sorry."

"I-I don't know what to say," Jake replied shakily. "I can't believe you're here right now… I'm not dreaming, am I? I've been spending a lot of time in bed, and I-"

"It's not a dream," Tori said, lightly touching his arm. "I'm here. I'm back."

"Tori, I-I wanted to say something really special if I saw you again, but I don't think it matters now. So I think I'm just gonna…"

Jake's voice trailed off as he pressed his lips to hers. Tori's eyes widened for a moment before closing, and it felt magical. They stayed like that for a moment, before pulling away from one another. They couldn't keep the smiles from their faces.

"So, are you gonna stay here?" Jake asked hesitantly.

Tori's smile grew wider. "Yeah, I'm staying here."

Jake lifted her into a hug. "You have no idea how happy I am to hear that!"

Tori happily returned the hug. When they separated, she blushed and said "If you want, you can say it now."

Jake nodded, and reached one hand out to lightly touch her cheek. "Tori, I…" He took a deep breath. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Tori replied.

They shared a smile, and their lips met again. When they separated, they both began to giggle, and didn't stop for a good few minutes.

After they calmed down, Tori said "You know, Grace taught me another dance."

Jake arched an eyebrow. "Did she, now?"

"Yeah," Tori replied with a grin. "She taught me how to slow dance."

Jake grabbed his phone, plugged them into his speakers, and began to play the Squid Sisters. He held his hand out to her. "Then may I have this dance, Tori?"

Tori smiled and nodded, and took Jake's hand.

They listened to a few songs together, slow dancing all the while. When they were finished, the two shared another kiss, and spent the remainder of the day talking and laughing together, making up for lost time.

 **[A/N] Surprise! Another chapter! I know the last few have been shorter than the others, but I'm pretty sure they get the point across.**

 **But yes, Colour Blends is over now. But the story's not done yet. What does that mean, you ask?**

 **Well, fans of these two will probably be happy to know that I am planning a sequel! It doesn't have a title yet, but I've got the basic plot down (and it's just as plagiarizing as this one). As for what that is… well, you'll find out when I publish it.**

 **I hope you've enjoyed Colour Blends! I'll see you guys soon.**


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